Student nExploration: nWaves
Vocabulary: namplitude, ncompression, ncrest, nfrequency, nlongitudinal nwave, nmedium,
nperiod,npower, nrarefaction, ntransverse nwave, ntrough, nwave, nwavelength, nwave nspeed
Prior nKnowledge nQuestions n(Do nthese nBEFORE nusing nthe nGizmo.)
1. A nbuoy nis nanchored nto nthe nocean nfloor. nA nlarge nwave
napproachesnthe nbuoy. nHow nwill nthe nbuoy nmove nas nthe
nwave ngoes nby?
A nbuoy nwill nmove ndown nand nup nas nthe nwave ngoes nby.
2. The ntwo nimages nshow nside nviews nof nocean nwaves. nHow nare nthe ntwo nsets nof nwaves ndifferent?
The nfirst nwave nis na
nlongitudinalnwave nand nthe
nother none nis na ntransverse
nwave nalso nin nthe nsecond
none nthe ndistance nis
nseparated nmore.
Gizmo nWarm-up
Ocean nswells nare nan nexample nof nwaves. nIn nthe nWaves
nGizmo™,nyou nwill nobserve nwave nmotion non na nmodel nof na
nspring. nThe nhand ncan nmove nthe nspring nup nand ndown nor
nback nand nforth.
To nbegin, ncheck nthat nthe nType nof nwave nis nTransverse, nAmplitude nis n20.0 ncm, nFrequency nis
0.75 nHz, nTension nis n3.0 nN, nand nDensity nis n1.0 nkg/m. nClick nPlay n( ).
1. How nwould nyou ndescribe nthe nmotion nof na ntransverse nwave?
The nwave nmoves nleft nto nright nwhile nthe nhand nmoves nup nand ndown.
Click nPause n( ). nNotice nthe ncrests n(high npoints) nand ntroughs n(low npoints) nof nthe nwave.
2. Click nReset n( ). nFor nthe nType nof nwave, nchoose nLongitudinal. nIncrease nthe nAmplitude nto
20.0 ncm, nand nclick nPlay. nHow nwould nyou ndescribe nthe nmotion nof na nlongitudinal nwave?
In nthis nwave nthe nhand nis nmoving nfrom nleft nto nright nas nwell nas nthe nwave.
Click nPause. nNotice nthe ncompressions nin nthe nwave nwhere nthe ncoils nof nthe nspring
nmodel narenclose ntogether nand nthe nrarefactions nwhere nthe ncoils nare nspread napart.
, Get nthe nGizmo nready:
Activity nA:
Click nReset. nSelect nTransverse nwaves.
nMeasuring Set nAmplitude nto n20.0 ncm, nFrequency nto n1.0
nHz,
nwaves
Tension nto n2.0 nN, nand nDensity nto n2.0 nkg/m.
Question: nHow ndo nwe nmeasure nand ndescribe nwaves?
1. Observe: nClick nPlay. nObserve nthe nmotions nof nthe nhand nand nof nthe ngreen ndot nin nthe nmiddle.
A. What nis nthe nmotion nof nthe nhand? n Moves nup nand ndown.
B. Turn noff nthe nLights non ncheckbox nand nobserve nthe ngreen ndot. nWhat nis nthe
nmotion nofnthe ngreen ndot? nMoves nup nand ndown.
C. Follow nthe nmotion nof na nsingle ncrest nof nthe nwave. nHow ndoes nthe ncrest nmove?
nThe ncrestnmoves nfrom nleft nto nright.
In na ntransverse nwave, nthe nmotion nof nthe nmedium n(what nthe nwave nmoves
nthrough—innthis ncase, nthe nspring) nis nperpendicular nto nthe ndirection nof nthe
nwave. nSo, neach npoint nof nthe nspring nmoves nup nand ndown nas nthe nwave
n travels nfrom nleft nto nright.
2. Measure: nWith nthe nlights non, nclick nPause. nTurn non nShow nrulers.
A. Use nthe nhorizontal nruler nto nmeasure nthe nhorizontal ndistance nbetween ntwo ncrests. nWhat
is nthis ndistance? n100cm n This nis nthe nwavelength nof nthe nwave.
B. What nis nthe ndistance nbetween nthe ntwo ntroughs? n100cm
The nwavelength ncan nbe nfound nby nmeasuring nthe ndistance nbetween ntwo
nsuccessivencrests, ntwo nsuccessive ntroughs, nor nany ntwo nequivalent npoints non
nthe nwave.
C. Click nReset. nSet nthe nDensity nto n1.0 nkg/m. nClick nPlay, nand nthen nPause.
nWhat nis nthenwavelength nof nthis nwave? n140cm
3. Measure: nClick nReset. nThe namplitude nof na ntransverse nwave nis nthe nmaximum
ndistance na npoint non nthe nwave nis ndisplaced, nor nmoved, nfrom nits nresting nposition.
nTurn noff nthe nlights. nClicknPlay, nand nthen nclick nPause. nUse nthe nvertical nruler nto
nmeasure nthe nheight nof nthe ngreen ntrace,nshowing nhow nfar nthe ngreen ndot nmoved nup
nand ndown.
A. What nis nthe nheight nof nthe ngreen ntrace? n 40cm
B. The nwave’s namplitude nis nequal nto nhalf nof nthis nheight. nWhat nis nthe namplitude? n 20cm